


We Could Be Men

by Ratlizau



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: 6 HOURS, Angst, Ender Dragon Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Enderman Hybrid Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Found Family, I literally started this at 10pm and finished it at 4 am, I love this boy so much, Implied/Referenced Character Death, and i'd do it again, ranboo supremacy, technically hurt no comfort, ummmm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-10
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 21:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29320971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ratlizau/pseuds/Ratlizau
Summary: It hurt. It hurt. IT HURT.Ranboo just wanted to make a new life. He wanted to start fresh and new, he just needed to grab the last of his stuff that was left over from the war. He wasn't expecting it to start with confrontation. He wasn't expecting it to end with him writhing in pain at the bottom of a water tank.It was over, he died. He pressed the respawn button and spawned back on the bed. He heard the pull back of a bow, then he was falling back into the water.OR, Ranboos death has affected the world, whether the people know it or not. While Phil deals with this new loss, something different boiled under the surface.
Relationships: Ranboo & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Technoblade & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 453





	1. Heart for Brains

The day Ranboo died, the world stopped crying. Rain stopped, the rivers dried up, more sea animals were found dead. Even Ghostburs sewer had grown humid and moldy instead of the eerie dampness that had brought the ghost comfort before. 

No one knew why this had happened, no one connected it to the enderman. What reason would there be, especially when an enderman, even a hybrid, is hurt by water. This would be perfect for him, he could finally get around without the heavy leather armor he had to wear just in case it rained. Yet it had happened anyways. 

But why? 

The only place spared of this was the tundra. It still snowed, and if needed, the inhabitants could break the ice for water. There was no reason to worry. Philza and Technoblade, the only people living in the snowy plains, didn’t notice the drought until it started to affect the snowy forest near them. Their crops were spared, just the trees were dying and the foxes and wolves turned up more often than not, trying to find a better place to stay. Technoblade was slightly confused, but mostly apathetic. There was no reason to worry if it didn’t affect him personally. But Philza knew better. He had felt the shift. 

He remembered Ranboo. He was pretty sure he was one of the only people who remembered the kid as a kid, and not the slightly intimidating, forgetful, 8’5 cryptid that showed up randomly. He didn’t talk a lot, and when he did his voice was monotone, much like Technoblades. His height caused him to literally look down at people, casting an air of impertinence. He teleported when startled, which happened frequently, and more often than not, would forget to return to the conversation, making it seem like he simply didn’t care enough. Philza knew better though. He saw the way Ranboo would slump to make himself seem smaller, how upset he got when he realized he forgot something, how he looks and sounds grown and mature, but on the inside he was exactly like Tommy and Tubbo: a scared, scarred little kid who has seen too much in so little time. A kid who needs to be cared for, nurtured and taught. A kid who knows nothing and everything, who gives too much and takes too little, who’s learned he can’t trust anyone, not even himself. Philza saw himself in the boy, and that scared him. 

He also saw Technoblade. He saw it in Ranboos loyalty, his determination, his love for simple things. He even shared his secret cunningness. While Technoblade brandished it like a sword, letting people assume the dagger was a kitchen knife and running themselves through with it, Ranboo used it like a pencil. It was subtle, and if noticed, often erased and forgot about, but it was useful, needed, craved. He saw Techno in the way that Ranboo expected to be betrayed, yet still gave his all. How he sat back with a sigh when it finally happened, contented with the feeling that he was right, that he knew it, and let that thought push back the hate and the grief and the misery. Philza has been around for a long, long time. He noticed the little things. He noticed that, even though Technoblade would never, Ranboo would still give him long, contemplative looks, as if trying to decide something. Probably if he should trust Philza or not. Technoblade gave the same looks to Ranboo. 

There was something about Ranboo that struck Philza as different. He had met a lot of people, a lot of hybrids. Yet, something about him felt similar to Dream, the near-godlike founder of their little world. He had created the portal, had invited almost everybody there to join. Almost, because while Phil was invited, Technoblade kind of broke in with the help of Tommy Innit. Fundy was invited by Wilbur, which was technically illegal but Dream turned a blind eye. Ranboo appeared out of nowhere, suddenly turning up near L’Manburg. He vaguely knew Tubbo, and when asked, Tubbo said that he and Ranboo talked a little before Ranboos “official debut”. He hadn’t known that Ranboo hadn’t been invited. So, Ranboo came out of nowhere, didn’t know the founder and the founder didn’t know him, knew almost nothing of this world, yet still felt like he had opened something big, created something similar to Dreams world. It was strange, and Phil constantly noticed it. When he felt the shift, it was almost like something physically pushed him back. 

When it happened, Phil was on his way to L’Manburg for some resources. Ranboo was there to gather the last of his stuff from Niki, as he was moving to Phil and Technoblades property. He had expect Ranboo to greet him at the portal like he normally does, and when he didn’t, the knot in his chest that had formed at the shift tightened. He felt dread. He decided to skip grabbing supplies until he found the enderman. 

He never got his supplies. 

He walked slowly to the center of “town”, where the L’Manhole was mostly filled in, and the local residents had set up little shacks in a crescent shape. The center of the crescent was usually empty, a free place for people to walk through or have picnics in the grass, like a little park. 

Instead, there was a giant tank of water. 

Dread built in Philzas stomach. He remembered when Fundy attempted to drown Technoblade, playing it off as a joke because the Piglin still had his three lives. Techno survived, as he was near immune to drowning, and somehow broke through unbreakable glass to fly out with his trident. He had attacked Fundy after, leaving him injured but not dead. Philza figured it was because the boy only had two lives left, and that Technoblade still feels a bit of guilt towards Ghostbur. He remembered when Quackity did not get that same treatment. 

Niki was sitting behind the tank, her figure distorted by the water and glass. She was sitting on a red and white blanket, staring into the glass like it would tell her something. Philza knew that she would probably be the best person to ask about Ranboo. He also knew that he wasn’t going to like her answer. He felt it in his gut, sitting with the dread, pulling on the knot in his chest. He sat next to her. 

He didn’t say anything at first. Casting a glance at her new little house, all of the lights were off and her cat was sitting in the window, sunbathing. The window on the other side of the door was open, and there were two pies cooling off. That’s right, her bakery went down with L’Manburg. 

“You’re not supposed to be here,” She muttered. She still hadn’t looked at him, but he wasn’t keen on making eye contact with her, so he didn’t try to get her attention. 

“I’m just here for supplies, mate.” His voice was thick for some reason, like he was emotional. He didn’t think of why. 

Niki sighed, pulling her knees up to her chest and leaving her head on them, facing him. “You blew up our home, Philza, not even Ghostbur is happy with you, and he gave Dream some blue yesterday.”

“Homes can be rebuilt.”

“You blew up the country.”

“Countries can be rebuilt,” Philza hissed. His temper was being tested by his stress, but he decided he didn’t feel bad. “You lit the L’Man-tree on fire, which apparently was the heart and soul of the country, so I guess we’re both to blame, yeah? Even then, I would do it again. L’Manburg was a nightmare, I wouldn’t hesitate.” 

Niki turned her head and put her nose between her knees, mumbling something Philza couldn’t make out. He decided to stare at the water tank, letting the dread coat his insides like a blanket. 

When Niki lifted her head she matched Philzas stare for a minute before sighing again. 

“Philza-“ 

“Where’s Ranboo?” 

Niki didn’t say anything. She knew Philza knew. She didn’t want to be the one to say it though. 

“Um,” she bit her lip, “I’m leaving L’Manburg. Moving in with George tomorrow, Sapnap’s supposed to help me build a house.” 

Philza didn’t acknowledge her. He stared at the tank for while longer, unmoving, even when the wind blew his hat off. Niki got up to go get it, offering it to Philza when she sat back down. He looked down at it, then looked up to meet Nikis eyes before grabbing it. 

“Can you tell me what happened?” He asked quietly, still looking into her eyes as they both held onto the hat for a moment. Niki let go of the hat and quickly turned, flinching when the water tank threw the suns reflection into her eyes. 

“I…,” she started. She tried to sigh again, but it devolved into a sob. 

“I don’t know how it started. Ranboo was grabbing the last of his stuff from my chests and what was left of his house. He had been trying to be quiet about it. He knew he didn’t technically do anything wrong but-“ Niki interrupted herself with a small hiccup. Philza restrained himself from hugging her, instead simply putting his hand on her shoulder.

“But Quackity has been weird recently, almost crazed. He mutters a lot, mostly to himself, and has been accusing people of the strangest things. He found Ranboo in my house. I was in the woods, grabbing sticks from dead trees, so I wasn’t there to help. I should’ve been. That was so stupid!” She covered her face with her hands, hiding the tears that rolled down her face. “Quackity accused him of stealing from me. He tried to defend himself, he had the key to my house and everything! But Quackity took that as an attack and drew his sword. Fundy and Skeppy were nearby, and Fundy heard the sword. They ran over and asked what was happening and Quackity ‘explained’, probably not letting Ranboo get a single word in. Fundy has been off recently too, and he took this as a sign to start naming every bad thing Ranboo had ever done in this world, including moving in with you and Tech-Technoblade. Quackity decided that Ranboo needed to be punished.” 

She sat up and gestured at the water tank. Tears were sliding down her face and neck, and her eyes and nose were red and blotchy. “This was supposed to be the start of a well, since the drought has gotten so bad recently.” Her words were thick in her throat. 

“When I came back, they had made Ranboo set his respawn on a bed that was directly above the water, and he respawned after dying in the water the first time. He was out of it, swaying a little. He had burns up and down his body from the water, and his clothes were still wet. I yelled, I tried to scream and get their attention but Fundy pulled out a bow and shot Ranboo, which threw him back into the water.” Niki took a deep breath, wrapping her arms around her legs. When she let it out, she was shuddering, “he only had two lives left when they started.”

Philzas eyes had unfocused at some point in the story. He felt something warm drip down his lip and ducked his head to wipe his face on his elbow. His hand dropped from Nikis back and he gripped his own wrist. His wings, as charred and broken as they were, fluttered against the ground as he forgot to care about them getting dirty. 

“Um-“ He started, but didn’t continue. He didn’t have any reassuring words for Niki. He felt like he just found out his kid had died. Like he had killed him. Again. What could have happened if he had been there? His anger simmered in the background, slowly turning into a boil, but he decided to give Niki the mercy of ignoring it. 

“Y’know,” she whispered, “He was amazing. Kind, compassionate, even to a flaw. He was a really good man.” Phil felt like she was trying to reassure him, instead of the other way around. It didn’t make him feel any better. His temper quietly boiled over. 

“Do you really know him, Niki?” He asked. 

“What? Yes, I mean, I think I did.” 

“Shut up.” 

Nikis watery eyes widened, watching as the older man stood up. 

“You don’t know him. He wasn’t an amazing man.” Some part of him felt like he was being cruel, but he didn’t care. “He was just a kid,” his voice grew into a yell, “a child that people like you threw into war. A child who served in wars and died before he could legally drink!” His wings snapped open, ready to take off. Niki flinched at the sudden movement, Philza flinched at the pain. He narrowed his eyes, looking directly into hers like he was trying to find an answer, a reason for anything that had happened. 

“A child that you called a man and gave a sword, just to leave him to drown in your own damnation.” 

He bent down and jumped, using the water tank as a jump board, and beat his broken wings against the air. He knocked the tank over as he took off, leaving the water that drowned his boy worthless as it soaked into the ground of the dead country. He thought it was a fitting metaphor.


	2. Harness Your Hopes

His journey back to the house was empty. He felt nothing as he flew through the portals and the hot air of the Nether. He didn’t flinch when a ghast spat a fire hall at him that barely missed, destroying a netherrack hill behind him. He didn’t flinch when a sharp throb settled into his back, or when old wounds at the base of his wings reopened and blood flowed down his back. When he came back, he was standing in front of his house's porch. Red snow trailed behind him and his wings slumped into the snow. The cold stung his face and hands and the wounds on his back. He sucked in a deep breath, the grief finally settling in. He kneeled on the ground, knees buried in the snow, blood coated wings and clothes staining the white around him pink and red. 

When the door opened, Technoblade walked out with a pickaxe, probably on his way to bedmine. He paused when he saw Philza in the snow, his mind taking a second the process that his friend was kneeling in the snow, covered in blood. 

“Phil! Buddy, what are you doing?” He put the pickaxe in his inventory, quickly getting off the porch to crouch next to Phil. When Phil looked up at him, his face was shiny with tears and his bottom lip was bitten bloody and raw. He distantly heard a voice, 

He’s gone

but he didn’t try to understand what it meant. Phil was right here, although looking wrecked, he wasn’t gone. He went to pat his back but paused when he saw the blood. Where his wings connected with the skin of his back there was torn skin, blood quickly welling up and dropping, staining feathers and matting them together. 

“Alright, let’s get you inside.” His voice wobbled with the effort it took to get Philza to stand up with him. Philza was basically a deadweight, staring at the ground with wide eyes. Technoblade hadn’t seen him like this since Ghostbur showed up for the first time. 

They hobbled into the house, Edward making a short vworp as they shuffled in their boat. Techno glanced at the enderman. He seemed sad, almost, as he moved his grass block around slowly. 

Techno moved Philza to a stool in their kitchen, pulling it up against a counter so he could lean forward while Techno bandaged his wings and cleaned him up. When he got him situated, he took a few steps back to examine his friend and see what needs to be done. 

oh no

Dadza! Hurt! 

he’s gone

help! help! help! 

technofix

he’s gone 

ouch

regen pot regen pot

chicken?

oh

EW

jesus

e 

HE’S GONE.

Techno flinched at that last one. He didn’t understand what it meant. Whatever. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. 

He grabbed a couple regeneration potions, a golden apple, some bandages, and Phil’s favorite blanket. When he came back, Phil was still slumped forward on the counter, now shivering, and Techno felt himself frown as he eyed the blanket. He felt bad, but it wasn’t like he could use the blanket and fix his wings. 

He figured that Phil was in shock right now. He didn’t know why, and was particularly sure if he wanted too, so he decided not to think about it. 

technothink

coward

“You got me there, chat.” He muttered, rolling his eyes. He stood behind Phil, eyeing the wings that were sprawled out on the ground recklessly. It would be better if they were on the counter, but he had a feeling he wasn’t going to be able to get Phil to do that, so he just stepped around them and mourned his clean, featherless floors as they slowly disappeared. 

He soaked a cloth with potion before gently dabbing the inflamed areas, also using it as an opportunity to wipe the blood off of him. Philzas shirt was a long sleeve that basically had a choker as the shirt collar, with the back of the shirt deepening into a sharp V to expose his back and allow movement for his wings. He usually wore a cloak over it, but not when he was planning on spending his day outside the tundra. 

If quackity’s a chicken hybrid, does that mean someone actually fucked a chicken

ew

what happened?

he’s gone

/rainbowchat

“Bruh,” he scoffed at the first remark,

Techno still didn’t know who’s gone, or what that means, but decided to ignore it again and start bandaging Phils wings. He grabbed his shoulder and lightly pulled his back so that he could have a better angle. Phil moved with him, turning his hand to glance at Techno before turning back. That probably means he’s conscious now. 

Technodoctor

Technoblade handed him the golden apple, which he took with a quiet thank you. He slowly ate it while Techno wrapped the bandages around Phil’s wings and torso, moving around his shirt and using the damp cloth to clean any new or dried blood. When he was done, he gently folded Phil’s wings against his back before wrapping the blanket around him and handing him the second regeneration potion. Phil hummed and sipped at it, waiting for Techno to back up before standing and moving to their couch. Techno cleaned up the small mess and followed him, leaving the feathers on the floor to be swept up later. 

“So…” Techno prompted as he sat on the couch with Phil. Phil’s eyebrows knitted together as he shifted, trying to find a comfortable position with his damaged wings and back. 

Gone

“I found some… pretty fucking terrible news today.” He said slowly, lightly laughing at his understatement while his eyes became glassy again. 

Techno shifted closer, eyes glued to the blanket over Phil’s legs. “What kind of bad news?”

uh oh

sadza 

bad bad bad bad 

He’s gone

Oh no!!

gone 

HES GONE TECHNOBLADE

Technos head twitched and he let his eyes wander up to Phil’s face. 

“The voices are saying someone’s gone, Philza.” He said quietly. He studied the mans face, trying to find an answer before Phil said it. 

Philza sighed, his head dropping as he gripped his arms. 

“Ranboo. Ranboo died today.”

Techno felt his heart drop; he looked down at the couch. So that’s what’s got Phil so messed up, he lost one of his adoptees again. 

He definitely didn’t affect Techno at all. He wasn’t concerned. In fact he was happy that he could get that ugly shack off of his property.

liar.

“How many lives does he have left?” He asked out of habit. 

“He had two. They took both.” 

“Oh. Who killed him?”

“Quackity and Fundy.” 

“Oh.” 

I KNEW IT KILL KILL KILL 

they will suffer

how dare

ranboo noooo

ranbro :(

blood 

imagine being a fucking furry

blood for the blood god 

e

blood for the blood god 

Blood 

BLOOD 

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD

they deserve worse than death

Technoblade couldn’t help but agree. 

He felt himself stand up. He stared at the window, out into the snow and the sinking sun. He looked down at Phil. 

“Do you need anything right now?” 

Phil stared up at him with narrow eyes, he knew what Technoblade was about to do. He shook his head. 

Nodding, he reminded Phil to text him if he needed something and went down to his storage room. 

The Blade walked out his front door, his newest axe in hand.


	3. Beautiful Boy

Ranboo didn’t suppose death to be so hard and rocky. He felt his eyes open, but when he looked up, he only saw darkness. When he looked down, he only saw black. And then a giant gust of air almost pushed him off whatever he was laying on and Ranboo swore that he didn’t yelp his shoe just scuffed against the ground awkwardly. 

He sat up quickly, groaning at the pain that seemed to be coming from everywhere. He looked at his black arm to see the skin raised and puffy, little cracking lines glowing purple were spread across the inflamed areas. His white arm was less harmed, but the skin was more pink than usual, itchy hives had broken out across the surface. He didn’t want to know what his face looked like. 

A softer gust of air caressed his face and 

HOLY MOTHER OF 

IS THAT THE FREAKING ENDER DRAGON

Ranboo decided that this is fake and that he has died and that he’s dead. 

Ranboo passed out. 

The Ender Dragon was not happy with that. Her Ranboo has finally come back and it decides to go slumber right when she needs it. She felt like cursing. 

Huffing, and ignoring the purple flames that bellowed around the sleeping kind of-dragon, she beat her wings once and flew back to the middle of her domain. The little enderman scattered once she neared them. Good. 

A couple were teleporting up and down the towers, seeing how close they could get to her Ranboo before she warned them. It annoyed her that they thought they could get close, but she brushed it off because her Ranboo simply wasn’t ready yet. It wasn’t scary. It wasn’t big enough to intimidate the little enderman that fluttered around her. They were stuck here, they had been for ages. 

At the beginning, there was a lot more. The dragons mother was a mutant, being born more than just another enderman. She had gotten stuck in this little domain with a quarter of the enderman population. She tried and tried to help set them all free, but nothing could be fixed. Then, the dragon herself was born and raised. As far as she knows, no two dragons can exist at the same time. She raised herself, learned by herself that she was not just a different enderman. She was stronger, better. She was the Ender Dragon. Simply that. She didn’t allows enderman to get away with the same stupid acts that her mother did. They used to steal bedrock from her next. They would dismantle the towers out of boredom. Leave the ender crystals open for destruction. She grew sick of it. So everytime a little enderman got out of line, they were killed. They have no other purpose. 

Her Ranboo simply appeared one day. That’s how it happens with most ender species. However, it was different. Smaller than normal, vaguely humanoid, half white. It had some enderman qualities. It could teleport, although not by choice, it was hurt by water, it could speak her language, it could move unmovable blocks. But it was just different. She knew though. This little thing was going to be the next Her. The Next Ender Dragon. 

She didn't really know how, though. And she didn’t really want to work to figure it out, so she sent it to the overworld, hopefully to learn how to be a true ruler and develop a proper taste for Ender Dragon superiority. 

She didn’t send for it though. And now it’s here. Injured. And still small. 

She supposed it was fine though. Time didn’t exist in the End, but she felt old. She was worn out, and her wings just didn’t move like they used to. It was time to let her Ranboo take control. 

She moved it from the obsidian tower to the wide area of her bedrock nest. It was still slumbering, but she supposed that she was too, when she was born. Or made. Or spawned. 

Given life too seems like a better phrase. 

She didn’t know exactly what to do, but she felt at peace. She didn’t know what to do at the same time that she did. That probably means she was doing it right. 

She curled up on the bedrock pillar in the center of her nest and closed her eyes. She let her wings go, letting them hang down and cover her Ranboo from the rest of the curious little enderman. 

She felt… lighter. 

Free. 

Gone. 

Ranboo wasn’t expecting to wake up in the End. He also wasn’t expecting to be five feet taller than he usually was.

He wasn’t in the End that he had heard about. There were no giant obsidian towers or thousands of Enderman surrounding. There was an extreme lack of a giant Ender Dragon flying around, although he felt like he had already seen that before, like he knew what it’d look like. There were a couple enderman fluttering here and there, blinking in and out of existence. While he was watching, occasionally an enderman would come up to him and place a block of some sort at his feet, say something softly, then teleport away. They were always too quiet for Ranboo to hear them. When he looks down at himself, he swears that he remembers the floor being closer to him before. He distantly remembered the feel of grass and snow.

And cold, cold burning water feeling hot, Hot, HOT against his skin

He wasn’t wearing his usual suit and red tie. Instead he and a button up shirt with weird, black-iridescent material that felt really soft. The sleeves at one elbow pulled up, showing his white side, except, 

had his nails gotten longer? 

He inspected them, they looked like claws, long and black, sharp and just slightly curved down. His other hand was the same, but instead of his usual black side, he had thin, dark purple scales lightly scattered across his skin, like freckles. 

Someone he knew had freckles. 

Fu… no

T

To- no

Tuh. 

Tuh… d- no. c? no. b? Tuh-b? 

TUB! TUBBO! TUBBO HAS FRECKLES! 

Tubbo chose a side. 

Ranboos claws were digging into his palms. He decided to stop thinking for a second. 

He heard a vworp behind him and found a pretty purple stone block. 

He looked at his surroundings. There were purple tree-like structures to his left. The other way held islands spaced far apart. If he squinted enough he could see a purple building in the distance. 

He opened his inventory, only finding a single purple block and what looked like a pair of black elytra on his back like armor. He tried to take them off, but only felt a tugging sensation. He tried again, stopping when it became painful.

Ranboo has wings now, apparently. 

Philza but like, noob. 

Philza. 

Technoblade. 

He jumped at the sudden memory of his two friends. Why was he here? Where are they? How… 

How does he find his home again? 

He started looking around frantically. Moving around was difficult, he was not yet used to his new height and he refused to think about how he was changed so much. The wings weighed heavy on his back. A distant vworp got his attention and he attempted to turn around, only to fall on his butt. He landed on a soft grass block. 

Grass. 

Snow. 

Home.

He looked up after another chirp in endspeak, the enderman saying either “here” or “queer” and Ranboo guessed it was the first one. When he finally caught sight of the enderman, it teleported up on top of something before going away. It looked like a little capsule made out of bed rock. Ranboo carefully stood to get closer. He could make out something dark with little bright lights in between the bedrock. It was about eye level with him. 

It was a portal. He knew it was a portal. He’d never seen one or gone through one, but he knew this was the way home. He stuck his hand into the portal. 

Ranboo has made the achievement   
[Free The End]


	4. The Otherside of Paradise

The world of Dream Esempi knew of Ranboos demise. If you weren’t in Manburg when it happened, you heard about it when Technoblade stormed what was left of the country, completely alone, starting with Quackity. And then Fundy. 

Blood 

And then he killed Skeppy, as he was a bystander that did nothing. 

Blood

Then he killed BadBoyHalo for trying to get in his way of killing Skeppy.

Blood For The Blood God

He almost tried to kill Awesamdude for just being there, before snapping out of it with an axe at Sam’s throat and a swiftness potion at his lips. Sam simply smiled sadly, lowering his hands from their defensive position. The creeper hybrid has come for some extra materials for his prison, but he knew what happened. He didn’t blame Technoblade. 

And then the world basically exploded. 

Technoblade was just returning home, tired and bloodied, when his communicator went off at the same time Phil’s did. 

Phil was on the couch, reading a book. He was stretched out on his stomach, straining to look over his shoulder as Techno closed the door.

“Hey mate.”

“Hullo.”

“...‘s that your blood?” 

“No.”

“Nice. Come sit down.” 

Techno shucked off his armor on the way to the couch, not bothering to pick it up until later. When he sat down, Phil had switched his position so he was sitting crisscross, facing Techno and leaning forwards. He took out his communicator with a frown, but threw it on the cushion in front of him instead of checking. 

“How’re you feelin’?” Phil asked politely, like he didn’t almost rip his own wings off of his back a couple days ago. 

Technoblade shrugged, digging in his inventory for a gold carrot, “shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” 

Phil shrugged back, making great conversation. They settled into the quiet for a minute, only Technos quiet crunching and the soft popping of the fireplace could be heard. 

“What took you so long?” Phil asked quietly. It had been a couple of days since Techno left. At first Phil had a hard time doing the usual chores, but he eventually figured it out. He didn’t remember that Ranboos animals also needed to be fed until the second day. The thought left a cold feeling in Phil’s chest and a bad taste on his tongue. 

Techno shrugged again, 

Technoshrug

e

and sighed. He looked down at Phil’s communicator, attempting to read it upside down. Phil was reckless though, so the communicator was close to shattered. 

“I got distracted a few times,” He muttered. On his way to Manburg

mmm murder

blood lol

blood god!!

he ran into a couple of things he couldn’t ignore. There was an enderman stuck in between a pool of lava and a small stream of water. He definitely didn’t spend a good three hours there trying to get it out. He passed by a village that had a sale on books. He almost bought a half price one because it was white with black pages. It looked cool. Ranboo would like that. 

He made himself angry.

When he went into the nether he raided a fortress and fought a decent horde of Piglins. He had way too much energy and if he didn’t do something Chat was gonna keep getting louder and louder. And well, time runs differently in the Nether than it does in the overworld. 

A message blinked on Phil’s communicator again. Techno gave in and flipped the device towards him to read the message. He almost choked on his carrot. 

As he frantically tried to find his own communicator, Phil realized something was wrong. Technoblade thinks that he said something to him, probably along the lines of “what the fuck” or “are you okay”. When Technoblade finally found his communicator, he almost dropped it. He shoved both devices at Phil and made him read it. 

Their jaws dropped.

Ranboo has made the achievement [Free the End]

Ranboo has made the achievement [Free

Ranboo has made the achievement

Ranboo

…

As he opened his eyes, the sky erupted. Rain flung itself down to land on his tired body as it laid in the quickly muddying ground. It was cold, and sounded like a nice night for reading. It wet his face and his hair and his wings. It didn’t hurt anymore. Nothing felt like it hurt anymore. 

There was something about the rain, the grassy plain he was laid in, the giant glass tank a couple feet to his left, that made him mad. He sat up and made eye contact with a small man with black hair that was standing in front of him. Something in his ribs felt like it snapped. Like he was finally out together again. 

He felt anger, and grief. He felt fury. His wings beat behind him, lifting him from the ground painfully, but he decided he didn’t care. Something hot and dangerous built up in his throat that he needed to let go. 

Ranboo opened his mouth and burned. 

…

Quackity was slain by Ender Dragon


End file.
